EU not investigating Google’s European tax deals – Vestager

EU regulators who are investigating whether Alphabet unit Google is abusing its market power have not extended their scrutiny to its tax deals with national authorities across Europe, the EU’s antitrust chief said on Monday.

Margrethe Vestager, who in recent months ordered Apple to pay up to €13 billion in back taxes to Ireland and Starbucks up to €30 million to the Dutch tax office, said Google was not on her radar for now.

“So far, no, we have nothing formal on that one,” Ms Vestager told reporters.

She said she had not received any formal complaint from the Scottish National Party which in January sent a letter to the European Commission concerning Google’s £130 million back tax deal with British tax authorities which some British politicians criticised as a derisory amount.

Ms Vestager also defended the slow pace of the commission’s antitrust cases against Google, saying she wanted the shopping case to be water-tight.

This first case has dragged on since 2010 when her predecessor kicked off the investigation.

– (Reuters)